


Forgiveness and Futures

by Shadowdoom10



Series: Gravity Falls Assistant AU [2]
Category: Gravity Falls
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Weirdmageddon didn't happen, Canon Compliant until s2e17, Mending Relationships, but is it unaccredited if I tag it?, mentions of suicide (but not in great detail), unaccredited appearance by Bill Cipher
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-17
Updated: 2018-07-28
Packaged: 2019-04-24 06:21:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 4,469
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14349723
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Shadowdoom10/pseuds/Shadowdoom10
Summary: Weirdmageddon never happened (but it was a close thing). The Rift is sealed and hidden away. Bill Cipher is defeated. But that leaves a few relationships strained. This is looking at those relationships, and dealing with them, so that they don't become an issue in the future. (Part of a larger AU that I created by accident)





	1. Stan and Ford Mend Shattered Bridges

**Author's Note:**

> This is the first completed work in an AU I created that I call the "Assistant AU", called such because in this timeline, everything happens as normal except Mabel takes her own backpack instead of Dipper's at the end of "Dipper and Mabel vs the Future". This means, of course, that Weirdmageddon doesn't happen, but it also means that Dipper still takes Ford's offer of apprenticeship and stays in Gravity Falls (Mabel does too, don't worry, I won't split up the Mystery Twins like that). However, I also realized that if I removed Weirdmageddon from the timeline there are a few strained relationships that don't really get mended, and I can't have that (both for personal reasons, as well as story reasons). So, this is a series of short tales about those relationships getting dealt with. They all take place before the end of that first summer.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Stan and Ford have a talk almost 50 years in the making. It goes pretty well, all things considered.

"Stanley, we need to talk," Ford said as he eased himself next to his brother on the ancient sofa outside the Shack.

"What about, sixer?" Stan's eyes never wavered from their task as they scanned the forest beyond for danger. ~~He didn't notice when Ford flinched at the nickname that Bill used, and he didn't care either.~~ "I started packing my stuff last night, I'll be ready to leave by the time the kid's parents come for your chat. _********_You _are_ going to call them, right?" Stan asked, side-eying his brother.

"Yes of course I'll call them," He replied with a glare, before apparently remembering what he came out here to do in the first place and trying to get the sofa to eat him. "Actually, that's what I came to talk about," Ford whispered so softly that Stan had to strain his ear to hear it.

"Want me to vouch for you then? I'm not sure how much help I'll be, being a convicted conman and all, but if you think it'll help the kids convince their parents or whatever than I'll throw my two cents in," Stan said, turning his attention back to the forest beyond.

"That's what I- ugh, Stanley, I want you to stay here," Ford said harshly. Stan finally turned to look- really  _look_ - at his brother, the surprise evident in his eyes.

"You really mean it? Wait, this ain't some kinda ploy to get me as the fall guy for anything that might go wrong, is it?" He asked, eyeing up his brother like one of the many tourists that visit the Shack.

Somehow, Ford managed to sink even lower into the seat. "No, no, this isn't some ploy to do anything except make amends for my mistakes."

Stan snorted. "Yeah, right."

"Dammit Stanley I came to apologize to you, the least you could do is listen to it!" Ford snapped, the stress of dealing with the Rift and Bill– and the lack of sleep they brought him– finally catching up. "After what happened with Bill ealier today, I realized something. Something important. You're _family_." He stopped, panting, and paused a moment to catch his breath and organize his thoughts.

"I'd forgotten what that meant in my years alone with Bill, and my journey across dimensions. I'd forgotten what it meant to have people to care about, and who cared about you in turn." Another pause, more organizing. Stan could almost see the gears turning in his head, trying to find the perfect words to say to achieve his goal- whatever that was. "When you opened the portal again, I was in the Nightmare dimension fighting Bill and his goons. I had long since given up hope that I would see this world again, and was determined to ensure that Bill wouldn't either. Thirty years, Stanley, I traveled across dimensions; hiding from Bill and building the Quantum Destabilizer in preparation of that day. In that time, I was forced to rely on only my own wits and skills to survive. But then I came back, and suddenly I had a family again. People who I could trust, and who trusted me. And in those first few days back I... I wasn't used to that. I said some terrible things, and I regret them now. I also realized that I'd forgotten to tell you something of vital importance." He stopped again, opening and closing his mouth several times as he searched desperately for what to say, and Stan waited with bated breath for the next words out of his brother's mouth.

" _Thank you_ , Stanley, for not leaving me behind, for working on the portal for thirty years to get me back. It... it means a lot to me that you were willing to do that for me, especially after everything I'd said during our fight. I'm sorry that I wanted to kick you out of the Shack, and for all the horrible things I'd said to you. I hope you'd be willing to stay." He finally managed, and a heavy silence fell between the two brothers.

Then, Stan reached over and drew Ford into a crushing hug. "I should be the one thanking you, poindexter. After saving my life, it was only fair that I returned the favor."

"What do you mean I saved your life?" Ford gasped out as he tried to extricate himself from the hug. Stan's grip was firm, however, so he remained.

"Ford, when you sent me that post-card, I was in a bad place. All my plans had blown up in my face, and I was basically out of cash. My life was going nowhere, and I knew it. I'm not proud to admit that I was ready to end it, to stop being such a waste of space. Then, out of the blue, I get a post-card from Gravity Falls signed by you that said 'I need your help'. Those four words gave me the hope that I might finally be useful to somebody for once in my miserable excuse of a life. That's- that's why I took it so hard when you told me I needed to get as far away from you as possible." His voice cracked, and he coughed lightly to clear it. "But even after you fell through the portal, that gave me new goal: to get you back from whatever hellhole it put you in. So, thanks for that too, I guess."

More silence fell, but this time it's a lighter silence, a comfortable silence.

"So, what next?" Ford asked softly after finally extracting himself from the hug.

"Welp, the kids are supposed to go home in a few days, but because Dipper wants to be your apprentice, and I doubt Mabel will be willing to go back home by herself, we'll have to tell them about the change of plans. Which means that the two of us need to figure out a way to convince them that Gravity Falls, Oregon isn't nearly as dangerous as it really is," Stan replied after a moment's consideration.

"And we'll have to explain my appearance, and why you took my identity, preferably without explaining the dimensional portal I built," Ford continued.

"Hell, we should probably skip anything that would fit in one of your journals, just to be safe."

"But we'll have to ensure that our story accounts for all of the stuff they might find normally, like that Gleeful child, or the gravity anomalies."

"Ugh, it's going to be a long few days, isn't it?" Stan asked, the smile on his face undercutting the aggravation in his voice.

"Unfortunately. I suppose we should start soon, then, shouldn't we." Ford replied with a matching smile.

It wasn't perfect, there was a lot more that needed to be said, but even so the two smiled, happy to be together once more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one was very obvious, as the only reason the two really get along in the show is because of Weirdmageddon and the events therein. Since I couldn't do that here, I decided to have Ford come to the realizations mentioned in Journal 3 on his own (with perhaps a little help from Mabel). I might write a short later addressing how it is that these two lunatics- and I say that as a complement, I swear- manage to convince Mr. and Mrs. Pines that Gravity Falls is safe for their kids, but honestly I don't think I could do the scene I have in mind any justice.
> 
> EDIT (June 11th, 2018): Changed story to past-tense to fit and cleaned up a few things to make it fit better with my other stories.


	2. Dipper and Mabel vs the Future 2.0

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The mystery twins have their own grievances to air.

"We need to talk Dipper," Mabel said as she plopped down onto her bed in the attic.

"What about?" Dipper replied, not looking up from the journal in his hands.

"You know what. We need to talk about what I did, what I almost did. I know you must hate me for it and I don't like it." Dipper closed the journal with a *snap* and looked over at his twin.

"Mabel, I don't know what you think is going on, but if you're talking about that thing with Billendin, I don't blame you." Mabel began to sink into her sweater as he reminded her of her mistake- even if it happened ealier that day. "I'll admit I was a bit upset at first, but I realized that I'm as much at fault as anyone, so I forgave you."

"But that's the problem! You shouldn't have to forgive me for anything. I was selfish and Bill almost used that to end the world! What if I'd taken your backpack instead of mine? I'd probably have given Billendin the rift-thingy and for what? A never-ending summer?" As she spoke, she sank lower and lower into her sweater, until only the top of her head remained visible. "I should've known something was wrong, Blendin  _hates_ when we mess with time, so why would he've offered to mess it up himself?" Dipper sighed softly, and moved to sit next to her.

"Yeah well, what about all the dumb things I've done over the summer? Like when I accidentally brought down the wrath of the Summerween Trickster on us; Or when I accidentally summoned a hoard of zombies to convince Agent Powers and Agent Trigger that I'm legit? I mean, I was certain that Stan wanted to destroy the world, and we both know how that turned out," He said with a short laugh, punctuating his list by placing his hat on her head.

"So?" Mabel murmured.

"Mabel, we're twelve, and we've been put into situations that no twelve-year-old should have to face. We've fought monsters that should be relegated to the realm of nightmares, hell, Bill is _literally_ a nightmare demon. We can't be expected to be perfect all the time." He wrapped his arm around sweater-Mabel and pulled her close. "We've both made some pretty big mistakes this summer, and I'm sure we'll make more mistakes in the future, but as long as we make them together, I think we'll be all right." He finished with a smile.

"I'm sorry for being such a loser about your apprenticeship, bro," Mabel said, finally coming out of the sweater.

"And I'm sorry for not talking to you about what our future holds, sis." Dipper replied.

"Mystery Twins forever?" Mabel asked, opening her arms hopefully.

"Until the end of time and beyond," Dipper replied with a smile, hugging her.

"Pat, pat."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one was also fairly obvious to me, although not in the way I had originally expected. The original plan was for Dipper to still be holding a grudge for the events in "Not What He Seems" and for Mabel to be upset about Dipper's apprenticeship, but it turns out that Dipper already got over that long before Weirdmageddon came. So now, Mabel is guilty about her selfishness in trying to get the Rift (and I will write about how that all went down at some point, Fates willing), and Dipper is guilty about accepting Ford's offer without talking about it first.


	3. A Lighter Conversation (Soos and Gompers)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And now, something a bit less dense.

"Hey dood, mind if I sit here?" Soos asked. Gompers looked up from the patch of carpet he was eating and bleated once in response, before resuming his chewing. "Nice, thanks." Soos took out his eternal pizza and began to eat as well.

"Hey, I was wondering, how did you know to attack that Blendin dood? I mean, I guess he was intruding on your territory or something, but I thought it was odd that he's the only person you've really attacked?" Soos asked after a few minutes. Gompers doesn't reply (being a goat and all), but Soos noticed that the carpet was adorned with a one-eyed triangle. "Oh, did you know he was possessed by that weird triangle dood? Oh, what was his name, Bob? No. Boris? No. Oh, I remember, it was Bojack! Wait, no, that's a cartoon I think Stan watches. Ah well, it'll come back to me. Anyway, did you know?" Gompers kept chewing. "Actually, now that I think about it, you attacked those Zombies too, right? And I remember you chewing on a red hat near the beginning of the summer, and I remember Dipper and Mabel telling me about fighting Gnomes or some shiz about then also." Soos seemed to come to a realization. "Dood, Gompers, don't tell me, you're some kind of mystical guardian for the shack, aren't you?" Although Gompers still didn't reply, Soos was enamored with this new theory of his.

"I gotta tell Dipper about this, it's right up his alley!" Soos shouted, Gompers himself forgotten, as he rushed upstairs to tell Dipper about his new theory.

Gompers didn't seem to notice the other's departure, content as he was with chewing on the carpet. Once the triangle's eye was chewed out, however, he got up and walked out the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one is more lighthearted than the others, obviously, and was designed mostly to help ease the heavy feels I thought the other two conversations brought to the table. As for whether or not Gompers really is a mystical guardian is for you to decide, because I'm certainly not telling.


	4. Dipper and Robbie Bury the Hatchet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Once their mutual conflict over Wendy's affection is removed, these two don't have much reason to hate each other, do they?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is set sometime after the love potion wears off, but before NWMM. It's not specifically mentioned (because I couldn't figure out a good way to mention it) but everyone's in Greasy's.

"So..." Robbie mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck. It was only Wendy's threat of physical violence that kept him from just leaving this stupid "bury the hatchet" thing. But threats from Wendy aren't made lightly, and he doubted that he could outrun her.

"So..." Dipper replied, looking everywhere _but_ at the older boy. He could feel Mabel's glare burning into the back of his head and he knew he wouldn't be leaving until they made their peace. For a while, neither boy said anything, Robbie was caught up with trying to determine his chances of escape if he jumped out the window (not good) and Dipper waiting for Robbie to say something, _anything_ to end the awkward silence.

Finally, Dipper sighed, realizing that he'd have to start the conversation. "Sorry for always trying to ruin your dates with Wendy." Dipper coughed into his hand to disguise distract himself from his ever-increasing heart beat, and quickly glanced at Robbie- trying to gauge his reaction to what was basically an admission of guilt about his actions. Robbie flushed crimson, but didn't respond for a few minutes.

"And I'm sorry for always being a dick about your crush on her. I, uh, probably could've handled it better," He finally admitted. "It's just that, I couldn't really handle the thought that a _kid_ was actually trying to compete with me for a girl's attention, uh, not offense." Dipper snorted, and actually managed to look up.

"Yeah, well, I suppose that was mostly my fault for- you know- deluding myself into believing that I'd be able to date someone three years my senior, so I guess we're pretty even in when it comes to unrealistic dating beliefs," Dipper laughed ruefully.

"How'd it come out, anyway?" Robbie asked after a few moments, his tone implying that he assumed it would be horribly embarrassing for everyone involved. At Dipper's raised brow, he quickly continued. "I mean, you always went out of your way to avoid the topic when it came up (which, in my opinion, is a _terrible_ idea when it comes to crushes, but whatever), so I figured that whatever forced it into the open must've been pretty bad." By the end of his hurried explanation, Robbie's demeanor had visibly lifted, and Dipper sure if he was actually interested in the story or just wanted to change the subject.

"Well, the short version of the story is that Mabel shoved the two of us into a closet, we had a near-death experience with a shapeshifing monster, and I gave a heartfelt reveal over what I _thought_ was her dead body," Dipper started, gauging his reactions all the while. Robbie didn't laugh (like he thought he would), but he _did_ flash a grin. (He was also dimly aware of Mabel and Wendy turning their attention to other things than their conversation).

"I'm gonna have to ask for the full story then, because I didn't think anything could even _hurt_ Wendy, let alone almost kill her." Dipper ducked his head again to hide the red tinge that was quickly spreading across his face as he remembered the events in the bunker.

"It was my fault we were there in the first place," He mumbled softly.

_That's_ when Robbie decided to laugh, but it wasn't cruel or condescending at all. "Why am I not surprised? Oh yeah, maybe it's because you seem to have a sixth-sense when it comes to all the weird things in the town." Dipper managed a chuckle at that too, which lifted his spirits accordingly. "If it makes you feel any better, you aren't the only one who's had weird things happen to them on dates." Dipper flushed again.

"It _wasn't_ a date! We were exploring a secret underground bunker that belonged to a scientist that mysteriously vanished a long time ago," Dipper retorted quickly, but Robbie's laughter again held no cruelty.

"Yeah, yeah. Anyway, like I was saying," He glanced around conspiratorially, before leaning in close, "The first time I ever brought a girl home- I was like, 7 or something, so it wasn't anything huge- we were attacked by a _vampire_. Mom and dad had to fight it off because the 2 of us were hiding under the table. She never talked to me again and I carried wooden stakes on me for at least a year." He laughed again, and this time Dipper laughed with him. They spent the next several hours sharing stories and laughing at each other's awkward moments, and by the time they were shoo'd out of the diner it was almost midnight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, two things: One, I wrote this mostly because I didn't remember them really moving past their differences in the show, and I thought that was wrong. Two, there should only be one more of these that will be posted... eventually (it's might be the most plot heavy one of these I make).


	5. The Science Bros Reconnect (Ford and Fiddleford)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Erasing the bad memories was never a healthy method to dealing with trauma anyway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're almost done with the summer of 2012 (I promise), after that things will (hopefully) be more exciting. 
> 
> P.S I totally meant to write this earlier, but forgot to get to it (sorry about that). (Seriously though, how in the hell did I forget about the sh*t show falling out these two had? Of all the people who I should've planned this story for, these two fall only slightly under the Grunkles. Oh well, it's here now.)
> 
> Also, this chapter marks the beginning of the game "spot the reference", which I will be playing for most of this AU. Some will be obvious, some will be cloaked in so much confusion that I sometimes miss them. If you spot one (or think you do), feel free to mention it in the comments and I'll let you know if you're correct (and if you make a connection that I didn't think of, I'll double-congratulate you for it).

Fiddleford rubbed his hands together before running them through his beard- again- and glancing around, hoping to spot some sign that people were welcome. But- like the last three times he'd done so- he didn't notice anything that stuck out as an invitation. He shifted his grip on the two devices he held, presents for Doppler ( _'_ _no,_ _his name is Dipper'_ ) and Marble ( _'Mabel, it's Mabel, not Marble,_ _who would even do that to their child_ _'_ ), and walked up the back porch to the 'Mystery Shack'. He gulped, knocked on the door, and sent a silent prayer that it would be one of the twins who would answer it.

Instead, he received a vision from his worst nightmares. A vision garbed in brown and red.

"Fiddleford, is that you?" Hearing the voice of his old partner jarred him from his shock, and his mouth opened of it's own accord.

"Stanford?" He gaped, even though he knew the answer. Of _course_ this was Stanford, there's no one else it could be. Then, his eyes widened and he took a step back as half-remembered arguments flashed through his mind. "No, I-I-I remember, you were in kahoots with that demon!"

"Oh no," Stanford whispered. He might not know exactly what's wrong, but he knew the signs of a panic attack when he saw one. "Fiddleford, just take a deep breath-" He began, taking a step forward, arms outstretched in what was supposed to be a calming motion.

"No, I don't know what you did to the others, but _you can't have me too!_ " Fiddleford screamed, backing up and flailing his arm wildly in a desperate attempt to ward off the fragmented memories. His eyes darted around, jumping from shadow to shadow as he searched for a way to escape.

"Fiddleford, calm down! It's _me_! I'm not possessed!" Stanford took another step forward.

"That's what a possessed person would say!" Fiddleford took another step back.

" _ **Listen to me!**_ " Stanford's order cut through the horrible memories, and Fiddleford opened his ears despite himself. "The portal was destroyed and the rift is... well, not really contained, but I'd definitely know if something happened to it." He paused and took in a deep breath before continuing. " _Bill's gone."_ Those two words had a visibly positive effect on Fiddleford, who stopped waving his arm around and glancing at shadows. "Fiddleford, what _happened_ to you? No, never mind, come inside, I'll get you a cup of tea. You're here for the twin's birthday I assume?" He held out his hand, hoping to convey a sense of calm that would help ease Fiddleford's worry.

"Y-Yeah," Fiddleford said, jerking away from the offered hand and glancing down.

Stanford sighed softly, worriedly. "Fiddleford, I swear upon everything I hold dear that I _will not hurt you_. Even if I _was_ under Bill's power- which I'm _not_ \- I'd still be held to that promise. Now, will you **please** come inside before everyone else decides to see what all the shouting's about?" He offered his hand again, all six fingers splayed out to show he had nothing up his sleeve.

"Okay." Fiddleford grasped his hand, though Stanford could feel him shaking as he did so.

They'd only made it a few steps inside before they were beset by the twins Fiddleford came to see.

"What was all that shouting about? Is something wrong?" The boy- Dipper- asked worriedly, glancing between Stanford ( _'his uncle? I remember them saying something about visiting their uncle for the summer'_ ) and Fiddleford. His sister, on the other hand, had eyes only for Fiddleford, as though she _knew_ what he was dealing with.

"Nothing's wrong, Fiddleford and I just need to-" Stanford began, trying to cut their worry off, but Fiddleford could see that he didn't know what to say, so he finished, "-Catch up on lost time and broken memories, nothing to worry about, I promise. I have gifts, but I reckon I need to have a little sit down right now."

The twins looked concerned, but the two older men were saved from more questions by a familiar voice coming from the living room drawing their attention. "Hey guys, check it out, Soos is gonna do a handstand on the TV!"

As the twins ran off Fiddleford could hear them shouting, "No way!"

"If anything gets broken, it's coming out of _your_ paycheck!" A coarse voice called out as _another_ Stanford walked out towards them, followed closely by various calls of, "Yes Mr. Pines!"

The twin Stanfords lead Fiddleford to the kitchen, and he barely managed thank them as he fell into one of the chairs. As Stanford α (the first one, the one he mostly remembered) rummaged around for tea, Fiddleford observed both men, noting the differences and similarities. They weren't the same, that much was clear from the fact that Stanford β (the other one, with the fez and suit) only had five fingers per hand, but they moved and acted so similarly that they _must_ have been brothers or something.

"We don't have much in the way of tea, is... 'White Lotus' okay?" Stanford α asked, glancing back towards Fiddleford.

"That's as fine as anything," He replied. He'd stopped being picky about tea so long ago that he couldn't really remember, though that was probably his own fault. "I noticed that you got rid of most of the... triangles." He continued slowly, and was surprised when Stanford α flinched and Stanford β's whole demeanor shifted into what Fiddleford could only describe as that of a mother bear.

"Yes, we did. They carried nothing but... bad memories with them," Stanford α said stiffly as he placed a kettle on the stove.

Stanford β snorted. "That, and Mabel kept having nightmares about the yellow shit until we burned or destroyed it all."

Stanford α turned back and leveled a glare at his twin. "I didn't want to worry him with that Stanley, he's had enough trouble because of Bill. We all have." He turned back to Fiddleford. "He's _gone_ , and he's never coming back."

But Fiddleford wasn't paying attention to what he was saying anymore, his mind was caught on one thing, "Wait... Stan _ley_?"

"Yep, that's me, Stanley Pines, this lug's older brother," Stanford β- _Stanley Pines_ \- boasted with a short chuckle, puffing his chest out and flashing a white-toothed grin.

Stanford grumbled, "Only by a few minutes."

Fiddleford stared at Stanley for a few minutes, trying to take in every single difference before he spoke again. "I know my grasp on my memories is tenuous at best but, I'm certain that I've never met a Stanley in town before."

Stanley seemed to deflate a bit at that. "After everything that happened with the portal, I ended up taking his name to make sure no one looked too closely at what was happening here-" He began, before being cut off by his brother.

"-not that it worked, in the end you _still_ had Government goons knocking on our door-"

"-oh shut up about it, will you, we managed to deal with them in the end, didn't we?"

"You mean _I_ managed to deal with them in the end, _you_ were panicking just as much as the kids were," Stanford said, raising his brow pointedly at his brother.

"Same thing!" Stanley retorted harshly.

Fiddleford raised a finger as the tea kettle went off, effectively putting a pause on the argument. "Uh, if you'll excuse my interruption for moment, maybe you should start from the beginning, 'cause I'm _totally_ lost and I'm pretty sure it isn't because of my crappy memory this time."

The two Stan's shared a long look- one that seemed to convey more than a few words- and then Stanford sighed. "Of _course_ you wouldn't know, I doubt Stanley even bothered to talk to you after I fell through the portal." Stanley opened his mouth to argue the point, but closed it again once a cup of tea was placed before him. "It started soon after you... left, the project..." Fiddleford listened closely as the two brothers give a highlight of the events leading up to and beyond Stanford's falling into the dimensional portal ("I knew it was a bad idea, crossing dimensions like that."), and only interjected a few times to explain how he ended up in the dump and how he regained his memories ("So I owe those kids quite a bit for helping me out like that, for sure."). When the tale was finally complete, Fiddleford looked between the two with new respect.

"So, what now?" Fiddleford asked. Now that he was off the roller-coaster of discoveries, he felt... burned out. As though he'd just ran a marathon.

"I dunno about you two, Sixer, but I'm gonna go make sure those kids aren't breaking anything with their party. 'Sides, I'm pretty sure I heard the Northwest kid talking, and I _gotta_ see that." And with that, it was just the two of them, Stanford and Fiddleford, alone once more. Only this time, Stanford wasn't consorting with a demon, and Fiddleford was determined to stick with his friend.

It was Stanford who finally broke the awkward silence the two created while drinking their tea, "If... if you want, I could show you the lab. I have a few projects I'm working on that you might be interested in seeing. If you want to, of course." He looked away, obviously expecting a negative response.

Fiddleford grinned despite himself. "Is that an invitation?"

Stanford's eyes snapped to Fiddleford's, and he managed a small smile in return. "Of course, you're always welcome in my lab, Fiddleford." He paused, and frowned again. "I'm sorry for what happened, Fiddleford. It's just that, I was taken in by Bill and he promised me that the project was going to change the world. Heh, I suppose he was right about that." He locked eyes with Fiddleford. "Can you forgive me?"

"Look, Stanford, I might not remember everything that happened, but even I can see that you're tearing yourself apart because of this. If what you've said is true, and I believe it is, then you had no reason to believe that Bill was tricking you like that. So, not only do _I_ forgive you, but I think that _you_ should start forgiving yourself as well," Fiddleford's words were said with an air of finality around them that brokered no more discussion on the subject.

He finished his tea, and flashed another grin. "I should give the kids their presents first, but after that, I'd love to see what kind of projects you're working on." And just like that, the mistakes of the past were put to rest, and a new future opened up before them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, and if anyone knows what kind of perspective I'm using, please let me know because I have no idea right now.


End file.
